Car-door fastening



No. 6l9,99 l. Patented Feb. 2|, I899. A. W. PRESCUTT.

CAB DOOR FASTENING.

(Application filed May 13, 1898.)

(N0 Mqdel.)

STATES UNITE ATENT OFFICE.

CAR-DOOR FASTENING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 619,991, dated February21, 1899.

Application filed May 13 1898- Serial No. 680,565- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AMos W. PRESCOTT, a citizen of the United States,residing at Haverhill, in the county of Essex and State ofMassachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements inFreight-Oar-Door Fastenings, of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide for freight-car doors aconvenient and effective lock which shall absolutely prevent the removalof freight from the car without destroying the seal-record and leadingto detection.

According to my improvement the sliding car-door has a projectingspring-latch formed with a nearly diamond-shaped head adapted to beforced forward between the inclined faces of a rigid block and ayielding or springpressed bolt, the movement of which is vertical or ina plane at right angles to the sliding movement of the door. The latchis elastic only laterally-that is, in a vertical planeand when it isforced forward in closing the car-door it yields downwardly to pass itsangular head beneath the inclined surface of the rigid block, thespring-pressed bolt receding at the same time to permit such head topass and then advancing under the pressure of its own spring andpresenting a vertical face behind a vertical shoulder of the head toprevent withdrawal of the latch. The rigid block or its casing isprovided with an eye, and the tip of the spring-latch has acorresponding eye adjacent thereto when the car-door is closed toreceive the hasp of a padlock or the connecting-wires of the ordinaryforms of a car-seal. The spring-pressed bolt has a knob at its end bywhich it may be retracted when the door is to be opened but it cannotopen without first springing the latch far enough to one side to enableits angular head to pass the rigid block and then moving the latchendwise with the sidewise movement of the door. This cannot be doneuntil the seal is broken. This sidewise and endwise movement of thelatch is incidental to the construction peculiar to my invention. Thecasing in which the rigid block and yielding bolt are located is securedfrom within the car permanently to the car-body in a position parallelto the edge of the sliding door. Said block may be held within thecasing by transverse pins, which can be removed, so that a new block maybe introduced if the first becomes badly worn.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of part of a car and slidingdoor provided with my improved fastening, the front of the easing beingremoved, the door nearly closed, and the latch ready to enter the lock.Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the locked position of the parts. Fig.3 is a detail of a modified arrangement of spring for the bolt.

A represents the car-body, B the sliding door, and C the grooved way inwhich the door moves.

D is a spring-steel latch secured at its end at to the car-door andprojecting horizontally beyond the edge of the door, being free tospring laterally and yield in a vertical plane within the limits of itsown elasticity in looking and unlocking the door.

Near its free end the latch has an enlarged angular head E approximatinga diamond shape, one of its faces being about vertical, as shown at e,to engage with the fasteningbolt, while the other faces are inclined, aswill be explained. The tip of the latch forward of the head forms a loopor eye F to receive the hasp of a padlock or a wire seal, as in Fig. 2.

G represents a casing, preferably of malleable iron, secured to theouter wall of the car in a vertical position near the door B, thefastening-bolts having nuts or heads within the door. Within this casingthe vertical bolt H is mounted, its stem It being encircled by a coiledspring I, which presses the bolt upwardly into contact with thespringlatch D and behind the vertical face of its angular head. Theupper end of said bolt is beveled or made oblique to be acted on by thetip F and head E of the latch D when it advances in closing the door. Inthe modification, Fig. 3, a V-shaped spring I is substituted in place ofthe coiled spring I.

A rigid block J, having a beveled or oblique lower end, is securedwithin or formed in one with the upper part of the casing G, itsinclined lower end serving to deflect the latch D downwardly when theoblique upper front face of the latch-head E impinges thereon in closingthe door B. The other oblique upper face of the head impinges on the tipof the ICO block J in opening the door and deflects the latch againdownwardly. In Figs. 1 and 2 the casing G is shown provided near its topand bottom with straps or flat staples g, the extremities of which areproperly secured within the car.

K represents a projecting loop or eye formed on or rigidly secured tothe side of the casing G opposite to the door B and just above the eye Fat the tip of the latch. The hasp or seal-wire L passes through andconnects these two eyes, as will be understood by those familiar withrailway practice.

I claim as my invention In a car-door lock,the laterally-elastic latchprojecting from the car-door and form ed with an enlarged, angular headhaving oblique faces, a vertical shoulder and a terminal eye, incombination with a rigid block and yielding bolt having inclined endsbetween which 20 In testimony whereof I have hereunto set 25 my hand inpresence of two subscribing witnesses.

AMOS WV. PRESCOTT.

Witnesses:

A. H. SPENCER, PHILIP HIGHBY.

